Guide full of unmissable tips for product photography
Table of Contents
Product photography is a very important resource for marketing and sales in general. In fact, the Internet in particular helped a lot in sales engagement to the point of creating the e-commerce and the possibility of extending this medium to social networks. Instagram, for example, is a platform that aims to work with images and videos — something that, consequently, makes the application very useful and ideal for virtual commerce.
It is important to highlight that nowadays the success of sales takes many different points into consideration. Before, the public decided what to buy through magazines and television commercials, in a very rigid way. Now, people can review other shoppers' reviews, influence their friends to buy a product, and even become an organic “ambassador” for the brand by talking well on social media. Knowing this, it is essential that you create sales strategies that, in addition to establishing proximity with your customers, bring credibility to your products.
Among the planning topics that you can execute, the area of product photography, if well executed, can be a great ally to achieve great results. Check out our complete guide below with photography tips and how to photograph products to boost your sales!
Why invest in product photography?
A product photography it is important for consumers to be able to evaluate the object and make the purchase decision. You know those photos of products that appear in catalogs and online stores? So that's exactly it. Many of these establishments — regardless of the sector in which they operate, ranging from clothing stores to handicrafts, for example — provide more than one photo of the product to show all angles.
Remember if: this area of photography aims to portray in a simple and objective way the products being offered for sale.
How much does it cost to photograph my products?
According to Chronoshare, a platform that connects professional service providers, a specialized product photographer charges between BRL 7,00 and BRL 12,00 per photographed unit. This average ends up being changed in specific cases, such as gastronomic photography. Still taking this example, as there are more specific techniques when photographing food, the value ends up being between BRL 10,00 to BRL 50,00.
However, if you feel safe to risk your gifts in photography, this game can be almost free. Photos of homemade products are not synonymous with a poorly executed result. With basic photography tools and tips, you might be amazed at the images that can be made.
How to photograph products in the best way
Invest in a tripod
One of the biggest frustrations there is is taking a picture and it comes out blurry. And although the image editing tools already have extremely advanced features, it is very difficult to edit the photo and manage to completely remove this blurring effect — not least because it is directly linked to the image capture.
One of the simplest solutions to this problem is to use a tripod. This divine object not only breaks branches but is responsible for bringing stability to the camera, whether a camera or a cell phone. Of course, there are different types of tripods, ranging from the simplest with lower prices to those with absurd prices.
Some tripod models have or can be equipped with a type of grip adaptable, which maintains camera stability even in the most sudden movements. In the lLook at Magazine Luiza it is possible to find some models ranging from R$ 20,00 to R$ 200,00 on average.
adjust the lighting
There are situations where natural light does the trick. In others, it is necessary direct the light all with evidence some feature or element of the product to be photographed. What cannot be done is to mix the two types of light, as each light source can have a different color and this will eventually negatively influence the color balance of the product.
Also, it's a good idea to work with the diffused light when photographing your products. It can be acquired through Ring light, which manages to be a reflector that evenly balances the direction of light.
Background and scenery composition
When you need to photograph a product that, eventually, the photo will need to go through post-production in Photoshop, the ideal is always to have a background or white background. Of course, you need to take into account the contextualization of your photography, but having these elements always helps. This is because the product can be more attractive to a buyer if you place the item against a background that makes it look natural.
Still on contextualization, in other cases it is important to combine more elements with the central object to compose the story you want to sell. For example, it is much more attractive to photograph an outfit being worn by a model than photographing it in a booth or on a mannequin. In that case, the buyer can have a more realistic basis of how that object could look on the body.
angles
Never take just one picture and be satisfied. When photographing your products, try to take pictures from different angles so that you value the items and show them in full for the consumer to evaluate. Sometimes, for example, the buyer loved the print on the front of the T-shirt that the seller advertised, but it may be that the back also has some design and, because there are no photos from this angle, the person buys it, is disappointed, returns it and makes a review negative. Therefore, it is very important that the product photos are varied, of good quality and from different angles.
Don't run away from editing!
If you think that somehow editing product photos is misleading customers, you can forget that thought. For example, small details such as removing unwanted elements and changing the image's cut so that it fits the molds of social networks, in fact it is a care that is part of the process, after all not everything can be adjusted at the time of capturing the photograph. By treating your image in editing applications, you end up showing care with your work.
Camera X Smartphone
If you're a beginner photographer, probably one of the first thoughts that should cross your mind is something like: "what kind of camera can I buy to start my projects?". Well, there are several great quality semi-professional cameras, but also some smartphones Commons are also of considerable value.
More and more mobile devices are emerging that bring more and more advanced cameras which are even more powerful than certain robust cameras from a decade ago, for example. Himself iPhone is reference with regard to the quality of the photos that it is capable of registering. In addition, several of the attributes of dedicated “traditional” cameras can be reproduced and adjusted by the cell phone itself (automatically or manually), such as ISO, lens aperture, shutter, focus and others.
A good part of smartphones also offer other advanced features that can normally be “unlocked” in the settings or in the “pro” interface of the camera application, such as stabilizer, night mode, color adjustment, resolution and grid lines.
Good semi-professional cameras to photograph your products
| Camera | sony alpha a6000 | Canon EOS Rebel T7 | Nikon D3400 |
| Price (from) | R$4400,00 | R$3750,00 | R$3325,00 |
| Opening | f/3.5-5.6 OSS | f/ 3.5-5.6 IS II | f/3.5-5.6 VR |
| image resolution | 24.3 megapixels/HD | 24.1 megapixels / Full HD | 24.7 megapixels / Full HD |
| Lens Type | Wide Angle (16-50mm) | Compact Zoom (18-55mm) | DX VR (15-55mm) |
| Memory | SD/SDHC/SDXC | SD/SDHC/SDXC | SD/SDHC/SDXC |
| Viewfinder | 3 inches / optical | 3 inches / LCD | 3 inches |
| Battery | 50mAh Li-Ion Rechargeable NP-FW1080 | 10mAh Li-Ion Rechargeable LE-E860 | EN-EL14A 1230mAh Li-Ion Rechargeable Battery |
| Connection | HDMI, WiFi, USB | NFC, WiFi | HDMI, USB. bluetooth |
Cell phones with good cameras to photograph your products
| smartphone | iPhone 13 | Galaxy s22 ultra | Xiaomi Redmi Note 10S |
| Price (from) | R$4900,00 | R$7400,00 | R$1400,00 |
| At the. of cameras | 4 | 5 | 8 |
| Photo Resolution | telephoto lens: 12 megapixels (F/2.8) wide angle: 12 megapixels (F/1.5) ultra-angular: 12 megapixels (F/1.8) Front: 12 megapixels (F/2.2) | telephoto lens 1: 10 megapixels (F/2.4) Telephoto 2: 10 megapixels (F/4.9) wide angle: 108 megapixels (F/1.8) ultra-angular: 12 megapixels (F/2.2) Front: 40 megapixels (F/2.2) | Telephoto: 2 megapixels (F/2.4) wide angle: 64 megapixels (F/1.8) ultra-angular: 8 megapixels (F/2.2) Front: 13 megapixels (F/2.4) Macro: 2 megapixels (f/2.4) |
| Video Resolution | 4K / 60 fps | 4K / 30 fps | 4k/30fps |
What other equipment can I use?
Now that we've seen several photography tips and the process of making them more attractive to your consumers, let's point out the main tools that can contribute to your goal when photographing your products — and other things too.
lighting sources
As mentioned above when mentioning the use of Ring Light, we emphasize that it is essential that a photographer has resources to adapt the ambient lighting to achieve the desired result when clicking the photo. If you don't have many resources at the moment, the cell phone flashlight itself can be a viable option to help you. Either way, the important thing is to test what works best for you.
Kitchen still or mini photo studio
A table still It facilitates the composition of the scene in a photo and also speeds up the editing process, in case the photographed objects have to be cut individually for a catalogue, for example. Bringing a curved surface, a still table can be purchased ready-made or can be easily improvised with a roll of white paper or a canvas.
The same goes for a mini photo studio, which can be purchased at retail, but also improvised at home with a cardboard box, for example. In this case, it is a more closed structure with entrances that allow the entry of artificial light, adjusted according to the photographer. This light input can be adjusted in the improvised studio itself or even from an external source, such as cell phone lighting.
See also other features
As we have seen, a good cell phone can be quite functional when it comes to taking product photos. The iPhone, then, has the best cameras among mobile devices. Check out 14 photography tips to take amazing photos on your Apple cell phone.
Sources: Motion Array, Big commerce, All About Photo, Hubspot, Canon, Nikon
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